by Rick Burke, Navy Office of Community Outreach Public
Affairs
(NORFOLK, Va.) - A 1991 graduate of
University of Kansas and Lansing, Kansas, native assumed command of USS George
H.W. Bush during a change of command ceremony held aboard the ship on January
12.
Capt. Sean Bailey relieved Capt. Will
Pennington and assumed duties as the commanding officer of GHWB in a ceremony
attended by distinguished visitors, family and crew.
“Of all of the Navy’s ceremonies, the
formal change of command is one of my favorites…while the responsibility and
accountability for the ship and crew can be transferred from one captain to the
next, the trust and respect of the crew still has to be earned by her new captain,”
said Bailey. “To the men and women of this great warship, I sincerely hope to
pick up where Captain Pennington left off.”
Bailey’s previous assignments include
commanding officer at Expeditionary Strike Group Two and USS Arlington (LPD
24).
GHWB was the first aircraft carrier to
support Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) for a second time and expended 907
tons of ordnance, the most expended by a CVN/CVW team since Desert Storm.
GHWB is
the tenth and final Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. Aircraft carriers
provide decisive and sustained airpower to support a full spectrum
of mission requirements.
The ship is in port in Norfolk, Virginia while conducting routine maintenance in preparation for the Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV).
For more news from USS George H.W. Bush
visit www.navy.mil/local/cvn77 or www.facebook.com/ussgeorgehwbush/.